Reuters Entertainment Summary

Accidental drug overdose killed Ledger: NY coroner

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Actor Heath Ledger died of an accidental overdose of six prescription drugs, with a mix of painkillers, tranquilizers and sleeping aids found in his system, officials said on Wednesday. A law-enforcement source with knowledge of the case said a formal request for the city medical examiner's records had been filed on Wednesday, seeking to discover who provided the 28-year-old Australian with the lethal combination.

Britney Spears leaves hospital as photogs give chase

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Pop star Britney Spears on Wednesday was unexpectedly released from the Los Angeles hospital where she was held for a mental evaluation, prompting celebrity photographers to chase her across the city. Spears, who was taken to UCLA Medical Center by ambulance and under police escort a week ago, left the facility quietly, according to the Los Angeles Times slipping out with a small security detail.

Madonna, Gucci aid Malawi orphans amid controversy

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Pop star Madonna hosted a celebrity-studded event on Wednesday on the lawns of the United Nations to aid Malawi orphans, the U.N. Children's Fund (UNICEF) and -- controversially -- to inaugurate a new Gucci store. Actors Tom Cruise, Katie Holmes, Demi Moore, Ashton Kutcher, Drew Barrymore, Gwyneth Paltrow and a heavily pregnant Jennifer Lopez were among many stars at the dinner that Gucci Chief Executive Mark Lee said has already raised $3.7 million.

Television gearing up for post-strike return

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - With a deal taking shape to end a three-month walkout by Hollywood writers, the strike-hobbled television industry is scrambling to get back on its feet and salvage what remains of the broadcast season. Churning out fresh episodes of hit dramas and comedies after a lengthy production shutdown is more complicated than simply hitting the "power-on" button of a remote control.

"Harvard's hot," Paris Hilton declares

CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts (Reuters) - About 200 Harvard University students waited more than an hour in bone-chilling rain on Wednesday for a speaker better known for hard partying than Ivy League appearances -- socialite Paris Hilton. The millionaire hotel heiress won the dubious honor of "woman of the year" from Harvard's satirical Lampoon magazine, and she accepted the trophy in person with a quick speech.

Linkin Park plans quick "Midnight" follow-up

NEW YORK (Billboard) - As Linkin Park prepares for its upcoming North American tour, frontman Chester Bennington is predicting a much shorter turnaround for the group's follow-up to 2007's "Minutes to Midnight." "We sparked a new kind of life into what we do during the writing of ('Midnight')," Bennington told Billboard.com. "We want to keep that going. I think we're in the mode, and I have a good feeling we're going to put another record out really quickly."

Hill and Louis C.K. on Gervais' "Side"

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Jonah Hill and comedian Louis C.K. will play Ricky Gervais' neighbors in the Warner Bros. release "This Side of the Truth." They join Jennifer Garner and Rob Lowe in the comedy, which takes place in a world where lying doesn't exist.

Spice Girls say sorry for cutting tour short

LONDON (Reuters) - The Spice Girls said sorry to disappointed fans on Wednesday for cutting short their reunion tour and denied it was hit by bitter in-fighting. They have cancelled concerts in China, South Africa, Australia and Argentina. The tour that reunited the British "Girl Power" group in a blaze of publicity is now to end in Toronto on February 26.

Fashion designer Jacobs' firm subject of probe

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Top fashion designer Marc Jacobs' company is under investigation by New York's attorney general for possibly bribing an employee of a state armory to hold a fashion show there, the attorney general's office said on Wednesday. "Marc Jacobs International is the subject of an ongoing criminal investigation by the Attorney General," Jeffrey Lerner, a spokesman for New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, said in a statement.

70s shoes strut the NY runway in style - and price

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The 1970s hit the catwalk at New York Fashion Week in not only style but price, with budget shoe brand Payless ShoeSource providing footwear valued at less than $45 a pair for three designer shows. In contrast to the Manolo Blahniks used by other designers -- that sell for several hundred dollars -- Payless hit the runway with shoes created and shown by Abaete by Laura Poretzky, Lela Rose and Stacey Bendet for Alice + Olivia.